University of Virginia Library

COME closer to me,      Push close, my lovers, and take the best I      possess,
Yield closer and closer, and give me the best you      possess.

This is unfinished business with me — How is it      with you?
I was chilled with the cold types, cylinder, wet      paper between us.

I pass so poorly with paper and types, I must pass      with the contact of bodies and souls.

I do not thank you for liking me as I am, and      liking the touch of me — I know that it is      good for you to do so.

Were all educations practical and ornamental well      displayed out of me, what would it amount to?

Were I as the head teacher, charitable proprietor,      wise statesman, what would it amount to?
Were I to you as the boss employing and paying      you, would that satisfy you?

The learned, virtuous, benevolent, and the usual      terms,
A man like me, and never the usual terms.

Neither a servant nor a master am I,
I take no sooner a large price than a small price       — I will have my own, whoever enjoys me,
I will be even with you, and you shall be even      with me.

If you are a workman or workwoman, I stand as      nigh as the nighest that works in the same      shop,
If you bestow gifts on your brother or dearest      friend, I demand as good as your brother or      dearest friend,
If your lover, husband, wife, is welcome by day      or night, I must be personally as welcome,
If you become degraded, criminal, ill, then I      become so for your sake,
If you remember your foolish and outlawed deeds,      do you think I cannot remember my own      foolish and outlawed deeds? plenty of them?
If you carouse at the table, I carouse at the      opposite side of the table,
If you meet some stranger in the street, and love      him or her, do I not often meet strangers in      the street and love them?
If you see a good deal remarkable in me, I see      just as much, perhaps more, in you.

Why what have you thought of yourself?
Is it you, then, that thought yourself less?
Is it you that thought the President greater than      you? or the rich better off than you? or the      educated wiser than you?

Because you are greasy or pimpled, or that you      was once drunk, or a thief, or diseased, or      rheumatic, or a prostitute, or are so now, or      from frivolity or impotence, or that you are no      scholar, and never saw your name in print,      do you give in that you are any less      immortal?

Souls of men and women! it is not you I call      unseen, unheard, untouchable and untouch-     ing,
It is not you I go argue pro and con about, and to      settle whether you are alive or no,
I own publicly who you are, if nobody else owns       — I see and hear you, and what you give and      take,
What is there you cannot give and take?
I see not merely that you are polite or white-faced,      married, single, citizens of old states, citizens      of new states, eminent in some profession, a      lady or gentleman in a parlor, or dressed in      the jail uniform, or pulpit uniform,
Not only the free Utahan, Kansian, Arkansian —      not only the free Cuban, not merely the slave,      not Mexican native, Flatfoot, negro from      Africa,
Iroquois eating the war-flesh, fish-tearer in his lair      of rocks and sand, Esquimaux in the dark      cold snow-house, Chinese with his transverse      eyes, Bedowee, wandering nomad, taboun-     schik at the head of his droves,
Grown, half-grown, and babe, of this country and      every country, indoors and outdoors, I see —      and all else is behind or through them.

The wife, and she is not one jot less than the      husband!
The daughter, and she is just as good as the      son!
The mother, and she is every bit as much as the      father!

Offspring of those not rich, boys apprenticed to      trades,
Young fellows working on farms, and old fellows      working on farms,
The naive, the simple and hardy, he going to the      polls to vote, he who has a good time, and he      who has a bad time,
Mechanics, southerners, new arrivals, laborers      sailors, mano'warsmen, merchantmen, coast-     ers,
All these I see, but nigher and farther the same I      see,
None shall escape me, and none shall wish to      escape me.

I bring what you much need, yet always have,
Not money, amours, dress, eating, but as good,
I send no agent or medium, offer no representative      of value, but offer the value itself.

There is something that comes home to one now      and perpetually,
It is not what is printed, preached, discussed — it      eludes discussion and print,
It is not to be put in a book, it is not in this      book,
It is for you, whoever you are — it is no farther      from you than your hearing and sight are      from you,
It is hinted by nearest, commonest, readiest — it      is not them, though it is endlessly provoked      by them — what is there ready and near you      now?

You may read in many languages, yet read nothing      about it,
You may read the President's message, and read      nothing about it there,
Nothing in the reports from the State department      or Treasury department, or in the daily      papers or the weekly papers,
Or in the census returns, assessors' returns, prices      current, or any accounts of stock.

The sun and stars that float in the open air — the      apple-shaped earth, and we upon it, surely      the drift of them is something grand!
I do not know what it is, except that it is grand,      and that it is happiness,
And that the enclosing purport of us here      is not a speculation, or bon-mot, or recon-     noissance,
And that it is not something which by luck may      turn out well for us, and without luck must be      a failure for us,
And not something which may yet be retracted in      a certain contingency.

The light and shade, the curious sense of body      and identity, the greed that with perfect      complaisance devours all things, the endless      pride and out-stretching of man, unspeakable      joys and sorrows,
The wonder every one sees in every one else he      sees, and the wonders that fill each minute      of time forever, and each acre of surface and      space forever,
Have you reckoned them for a trade or farm-work?      or for the profits of a store? or to achieve      yourself a position? or to fill a gentleman's      leisure, or a lady's leisure?

Have you reckoned the landscape took substance      and form that it might be painted in a      picture?
Or men and women that they might be written of,      and songs sung?
Or the attraction of gravity, and the great laws      and harmonious combinations, and the fluids      of the air, as subjects for the savans?
Or the brown land and the blue sea for maps and      charts?
Or the stars to be put in constellations and      named fancy names?
Or that the growth of seeds is for agricultural ta-     bles, or agriculture itself?

Old institutions, these arts, libraries, legends,      collections, and the practice handed along      in manufactures, will we rate them so high?
Will we rate our cash and business high? I have      no objection,
I rate them high as the highest, then a child born      of a woman and man I rate beyond all rate.

We thought our Union grand, and our Constitution      grand,
I do not say they are not grand and good, for they      are,
I am this day just as much in love with them as      you,
Then I am eternally in love with you, and with      all my fellows upon the earth.

We consider bibles and religions divine — I do not      say they are not divine,
I say they have all grown out of you, and may      grow out of you still,
It is not they who give the life, it is you who give      the life,
Leaves are not more shed from the trees, or trees      from the earth, than they are shed out of      you.

The sum of all known reverence I add up in you,      whoever you are,
The President is there in the White House for      you, it is not you who are here for him,
The Secretaries act in their bureaus for you, not      you here for them,
The Congress convenes every December for you,
Laws, courts, the forming of States, the charters      of cities, the going and coming of commerce      and mails, are all for you.

All doctrines, all politics and civilization, exurge      from you,
All sculpture and monuments, and anything in-     scribed anywhere, are tallied in you,
The gist of histories and statistics as far back as      the records reach, is in you this hour, and      myths and tales the same,
If you were not breathing and walking here,      where would they all be?
The most renowned poems would be ashes, ora-     tions and plays would be vacuums.

All architecture is what you do to it when you      look upon it,
Did you think it was in the white or gray stone?      or the lines of the arches and cornices?

All music is what awakes from you, when you      are reminded by the instruments,
It is not the violins and the cornets — it is not the      oboe nor the beating drums, nor the score of      the baritone singer singing his sweet ro-     manza, nor that of the men's chorus, nor that      of the women's chorus,
It is nearer and farther than they.

Will the whole come back then?
Can each see signs of the best by a look in the      looking-glass? is there nothing greater or      more?
Does all sit there with you, and here with me?

The old, forever-new things — you foolish child!      the closest, simplest things, this moment with      you,
Your person, and every particle that relates to      your person,
The pulses of your brain, waiting their chance      and encouragement at every deed or sight,
Anything you do in public by day, and anything      you do in secret between-days,
What is called right and what is called wrong,      what you behold or touch, what causes your      anger or wonder,
The ankle-chain of the slave, the bed of the bed-     house, the cards of the gambler, the plates      of the forger,
What is seen or learnt in the street, or intui-     tively learnt,
What is learnt in the public school, spelling,      reading, writing, ciphering, the black-board,      the teacher's diagrams,
The panes of the windows, all that appears      through them, the going forth in the morning,      the aimless spending of the day,
(What is it that you made money? what is it that      you got what you wanted?)
The usual routine, the work-shop, factory, yard,      office, store, desk,
The jaunt of hunting or fishing, the life of hunt-     ing or fishing,
Pasture-life, foddering, milking, herding, all the      personnel and usages,
The plum-orchard, apple-orchard, gardening,      seedlings, cuttings, flowers, vines,
Grains, manures, marl, clay, loam, the subsoil      plough, the shovel, pick, rake, hoe, irrigation,      draining,
The curry-comb, the horse-cloth, the halter, bridle,      bits, the very wisps of straw,
The barn and barn-yard, the bins, mangers, mows,      racks,
Manufactures, commerce, engineering, the build-     ing of cities, every trade carried on there,      the implements of every trade,
The anvil, tongs, hammer, the axe and wedge,      the square, mitre, jointer, smoothing-plane,
The plumbob, trowel, level, the wall-scaffold, the      work of walls and ceilings, any mason-     work,
The steam-engine, lever, crank, axle, piston, shaft,      air-pump, boiler, beam, pulley, hinge, flange,      band, bolt, throttle, governors, up and down      rods,
The ship's compass, the sailor's tarpaulin, the      stays and lanyards, the ground tackle for      anchoring or mooring, the life-boat for      wrecks,
The sloop's tiller, the pilot's wheel and bell, the      yacht or fish-smack, the great gay-pennanted      three-hundred-foot steamboat under full head-     way, with her proud fat breasts and her deli-     cate swift-flashing paddles,
The trail, line, hooks, sinkers, the seine, hauling      the seine,
The arsenal, small-arms, rifles, gunpowder, shot,      caps, wadding, ordnance for war, carriages;
Every-day objects, house-chairs, carpet, bed,      counterpane of the bed, him or her sleeping      at night, wind blowing, indefinite noises,
The snow-storm or rain-storm, the tow-trowsers,      the lodge-hut in the woods, the still-hunt,
City and country, fire-place, candle, gas-light,      heater, aqueduct,
The message of the governor, mayor, chief of      police — the dishes of breakfast, dinner, sup-     per,
The bunk-room, the fire-engine, the string-term,      the car or truck behind,
The paper I write on or you write on, every word      we write, every cross and twirl of the pen,      and the curious way we write what we think,      yet very faintly,
The directory, the detector, the ledger, the books      in ranks on the book-shelves, the clock at-     tached to the wall,
The ring on your finger, the lady's wristlet, the      scent-powder, the druggist's vials and jars,      the draught of lager-beer,
The etui of surgical instruments, the etui of ocu-     list's or aurist's instruments, or dentist's in-     struments,
The permutating lock that can be turned and      locked as many different ways as there are      minutes in a year,
Glass-blowing, nail-making, salt-making, tin-roof-     ing, shingle-dressing, candle-making, lock-     making and hanging,
Ship-carpentering, dock-building, fish-curing, ferry-     ing, stone-breaking, flagging of side-walks      by flaggers,
The pump, the pile-driver, the great derrick, the      coal-kiln and brick-kiln,
Coal-mines, all that is down there, the lamps in      the darkness, echoes, songs, what medita-     tions, what vast native thoughts looking      through smutch'd faces,
Iron-works, forge-fires in the mountains or by      river-banks, men around feeling the melt      with huge crowbars — lumps of ore, the due      combining of ore, limestone, coal — the blast-     furnace and the puddling-furnace, the loup-
     lump at the bottom of the melt at last —      the rolling-mill, the stumpy bars of pig-iron,      the strong clean-shaped T rail for rail-     roads,
Oil-works, silk-works, white-lead-works, the      sugar-house, steam-saws, the great mills and      factories,
Lead-mines, and all that is done in lead-mines, or      with the lead afterward,
Copper-mines, the sheets of copper, and what is      formed out of the sheets, and all the work in      forming it,
Stone-cutting, shapely trimmings for facades,      or window or door lintels — the mallet,      the tooth-chisel, the jib to protect the      thumb,
Oakum, the oakum-chisel, the caulking-iron — the      kettle of boiling vault-cement, and the fire      under the kettle,
The cotton-bale, the stevedore's hook, the saw and      buck of the sawyer, the screen of the coal-     screener, the mould of the moulder, the      working-knife of the butcher, the ice-saw,      and all the work with ice,
The four-double cylinder press, the hand-press,      the frisket and tympan, the compositor's stick      and rule, type-setting, making up the forms,      all the work of newspaper counters, folders,      carriers, news-men,
The implements for daguerreotyping — the tools      of the rigger, grappler, sail-maker, block-     maker,
Goods of gutta-percha, papier-mache, colors,      brushes, brush-making, glazier's implements,
The veneer and glue-pot, the confectioner's orna-     ments, the decanter and glasses, the shears      and flat-iron,
The awl and knee-strap, the pint measure and      quart measure, the counter and stool, the      writing-pen of quill or metal — the making of      all sorts of edged tools,
The ladders and hanging ropes of the gymnasium,      manly exercises, the game of base-ball, run-     ning, leaping, pitching quoits,
The designs for wall-papers, oil-cloths, carpets,      the fancies for goods for women, the book-     binder's stamps,
The brewery, brewing, the malt, the vats, every-     thing that is done by brewers, also by wine-     makers, also vinegar-makers,
Leather-dressing, coach-making, boiler-making,      rope-twisting, distilling, sign-painting, lime-     burning, coopering, cotton-picking, electro-     plating, stereotyping,
Stave-machines, planing-machines, reaping-ma-     chines, ploughing-machines, thrashing-ma-     chines, steam-wagons,
The cart of the carman, the omnibus, the ponder-     ous dray,
The wires of the electric telegraph stretched on      land, or laid at the bottom of the sea, and      then the message in an instant from ten      thousand miles off,
The snow-plough and two engines pushing it, the      ride in the express-train of only one car, the      swift go through a howling storm — the locomo-     tive, and all that is done about a locomotive,
The bear-hunt or coon-hunt, the bonfire of shav-     ings in the open lot in the city, the crowd of      children watching,
The blows of the fighting-man, the upper-cut and      one-two-three,
Pyrotechny, letting off colored fire-works at      night, fancy figures and jets,
Shop-windows, coffins in the sexton's ware-room,      fruit on the fruit-stand — beef in the butcher's      stall, the slaughter-house of the butcher,      the butcher in his killing-clothes,
The area of pens of live pork, the killing-hammer,      the hog-hook, the scalder's tub, gutting, the      cutter's cleaver, the packer's maul, and the      plenteous winter-work of pork-packing,
Flour-works, grinding of wheat, rye, maize, rice       — the barrels and the half and quarter barrels,      the loaded barges, the high piles on wharves      and levees,
Bread and cakes in the bakery, the milliner's rib-     bons, the dress-maker's patterns, the tea-table,      the home-made sweetmeats;
Coins and medals, the ancient bronze coin, bust,      inscription, date, ring-money, the copper      cent, the silver dime, the five-dime piece, the      gold dollar, the fifty-dollar piece — Modern      coins, and all the study and reminiscence of      old coins,
Cheap literature, maps, charts, lithographs, daily      and weekly newspapers,
The column of wants in the one-cent paper,      the news by telegraph, amusements, operas,      shows,
The business parts of a city, the trottoirs of a      city when thousands of well-dressed people      walk up and down,
The cotton, woolen, linen you wear, the money      you make and spend,
Your room and bed-room, your piano-forte, the      stove and cook-pans,
The house you live in, the rent, the other tenants,      the deposite in the savings-bank, the trade at      the grocery,
The pay on Saturday night, the going home, and      the purchases;
In them the heft of the heaviest — in them far      more than you estimated, and far less also,
In them, not yourself — you and your soul enclose      all things, regardless of estimation,
In them your themes, hints, provokers — if not,      the whole earth has no themes, hints, pro-     vokers, and never had.

I do not affirm what you see beyond is futile — I      do not advise you to stop,
I do not say leadings you thought great are not      great,
But I say that none lead to greater, sadder, hap-     pier, than those lead to.

Will you seek afar off? you surely come back at      last,
In things best known to you, finding the best, or      as good as the best,
In folks nearest to you finding also the sweetest,      strongest, lovingest,
Happiness not in another place, but this place —      not for another hour, but this hour,
Man in the first you see or touch, always in your      friend, brother, nighest neighbor — Woman in      your mother, lover, wife,
The popular tastes and occupations taking prece-     dence in poems or anywhere,
You workwomen and workmen of These States      having your own divine and strong life —      looking the President always sternly in the

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     face, unbending, nonchalant, understanding      that he is to be kept by you to short and      sharp account of himself,
And all else thus far giving place to men and      women.

When the psalm sings instead of the singer,
When the script preaches instead of the preacher,
When the pulpit descends and goes instead of the      carver that carved the supporting-desk,
When I can touch the body of books, by night or      by day, and when they touch my body back      again,
When the sacred vessels, or the bits of the eucha-     rist, or the lath and plast, procreate as effec-     tually as the young silver-smiths or bakers, or      the masons in their over-alls,
When a university course convinces like a slum-     bering woman and child convince,
When the minted gold in the vault smiles like the      night-watchman's daughter,
When warrantee deeds loafe in chairs opposite,      and are my friendly companions,
I intend to reach them my hand, and make as      much of them as I do of men and women.